Brit husband, 76, who killed his terminally-ill wife to ‘liberate’ her from suffering arrives at Cyprus court for his sentencing with judges to decide whether he can walk free TODAY
- David Hunter will today be sentenced for manslaughter over wife Janice’s death
- His legal team want a suspended sentence – he has spent 19 months in custody
A retired British miner who killed his terminally-ill wife to ‘liberate’ her from suffering has arrived at court to be sentenced today.
David Hunter, 76, was previously charged with murdering his childhood sweetheart Janice, 74 at their home near the coastal resort town of Paphos, Cyprus.
The pensioner told Pathos District Court how his wife of 52 years had ‘cried and begged’ for him to end her life as she endured agonising pain from blood cancer before he suffocated her in December 2021.
And earlier this month judges cleared Hunter of murder and instead convicted him of the lesser charge of manslaughter, with Judge Michalis Droussiotis accepting he ‘loved his wife and took care of her’.
But despite already having served 19 months in custody, Hunter, who is originally from Northumberland, may still face more time in prison.
David Hunter (left) is transported from Paphos District Court in Cyprus after he was found guilty by Cypriot judges of the manslaughter of his terminally ill wife Janice, who died of asphyxiation at the couple’s home in December 2021
A police van transporting David Hunter arriving at Paphos District Court in Cyprus for sentencing after he was found guilty by Cypriot judges of the manslaughter of his terminally-ill wife Janice, 74, on Monday
Hunter leaving the Paphos District Court in Cyprus after his sentencing was adjourned
Hunter smothered Janice in 2021 at their retirement home in Cyprus. Last week, he told the Paphos criminal trial how he took the heart-breaking decision to end her suffering from devastating blood cancer
His defence team argued during a hearing on Thursday that Hunter should be handed a suspended sentence and have used precedents from across the Commonwealth as part of his case.
If judges decide to impose a suspended sentence, the pensioner will be able to walk free today.
Michael Polak, of Justice Abroad which represented the pensioner, previously said: ‘We strongly believe that no proper purpose would be served by David spending any further time in Nicosia prison.’
At the hearing on Thursday, Hunter’s defence lawyer, Ritsa Pekri, said his motive for killing Janice was to ‘liberate his wife from all that she was going through due to her health conditions’.
This is a breaking news story, more to follow…
